I can remember the days when going out for lunch or dinner used to be spontaneous, and didn’t require any prior planning… Yeah, the days before I became a mother. Now, with a very active, extremely adventurous, and a bit too loud four-year-old boy on board, I’ve became hooked on Pinterest, always on the lookout for new simple activities to keep my child in his seat for a decent amount of time, just enough for me and his dad to peacefully finish our meal, without having to deal with tantrums or having to discipline my kid while receiving angry looks from diners who have no desire to get a glimpse of what parenting in public looks like.
Let’s face it, children have no interest in Thai, Italian, Moroccan or whichever cuisine you decide to indulge in; they also don’t have the ability to sit still for long periods of time, so taking them to a closed space that requires them to sit down for at least an hour is simply torture! Sometimes we lovingly expect our children to behave like adults and we blame them if they don’t, forgetting all about their limited capabilities and how they are still at the beginning of their learning journey. Therefore, having high expectations will only result in lost battles and lots of tears – shed by both parties, parents as well as kids.
On the other hand, we can’t just deprive ourselves of the pleasure of having a nice meal in a pleasant atmosphere every once in a while, just because we decided to reproduce! So, today I will share some of the tips that have been working greatly for us and hopefully they will work for you too!
- First of all, choose your place wisely. Avoidgoing to fine-dining restaurants which aremore designed for grown-ups than children
- Time your trip so the child is not tootired and grumpy by the time you start yourmeal; this way you can avoid unnecessarymeltdowns and tantrums.
- Bring supplies! I use a bag that we call ‘The entertainment bag’, where I store a few simple board games or memory games,which I know my child loves, and a bookwhich I change after every outing, so hedoesn’t get bored. I also always have somepaper and crayons in case he decides to getcreative and a few small toys that I know helikes and which will keep him busy.
Plus we have invented a few games that weall play as a family, while we are waiting for our food, such as ‘The opposites game’where each one will give a word and therest are required to say the opposite, or ‘The guessing game’ where each one will describe a fruit or vegetable, without sayingwhat it is, and the rest will have to guess.This is so much fun, very informative andhelps in connecting with the child. - Give the child a chance to choose theirmeal. I usually ask for another menu formy son because they almost never give himone…well he is only four! If the menu
doesn’t have pictures of the food, I just tellhim what they have and let him decide forhimself. In addition to giving him a voiceand making him heard, this also keeps thechild busy for some extra minutes, becauseeven after choosing their meal they like to browse through the menu (so it’s a win; win). - Don’t get too comfortable. I’m a slow eaterand I love to enjoy my meals, but whenmy child is with us I try to set a time limit.Usually we don’t stay for more than an houror whenever I notice that he is getting tiredof sitting down, we usually make a move.
- My last advice is to always respect otherdiners, and always try to clean up a bitbefore you leave. This will teach yourchild to be mindful of others and to alwaysbe thoughtful, respectful and considerate ofother people’s feelings.
